


Imprisoned Realm

by Hermioneluv



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, Child Soldiers, Dark Harry, Death Eater Harry Potter, Death Eaters, Dimension Travel, F/M, Gen, Goblins, Good Death Eaters, Harry Potter in Azkaban, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, M/M, Mages, Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter), Prisoner of War, Rape Recovery, Slavery, The Ministry of Magic (Harry Potter) is Terrible, War
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-08
Updated: 2020-11-10
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:28:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25781383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hermioneluv/pseuds/Hermioneluv
Summary: A trap during the Horcrux hunt sends Harry into a dimension where war has raged for 28 years. Harry must not only protect himself from Voldemort, but also from a rising new Dark Lord, the evil Ministry, a war-hardened Dumbledore... and himself. Will he find his way back home to finish his own war? COMPLETE. Currently editing fic on ff.net
Relationships: Bellatrix Black Lestrange/Harry Potter, Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley, Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley, James Potter/Lily Evans Potter
Comments: 1
Kudos: 33





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is also on FF.net and is complete there. I am currently editing chapters.
> 
> Imprisoned Realm is a very dark story with confronting adult themes, including violence, torture and rape of a major character(s) (non graphic, fade to black scenes) and some squeamish injuries. War isn't pretty.
> 
> * Thanks to Brianna for Betaing some of my fic. 
> 
> For most of the story, I have edited it myself, so I apologise for SPaG and other errors.  
> ___________________________________

**Imprisoned Realm**

* * *

**_A/N:_ ** _Harry's wand was never broken in the Canon realm and this spurred on the change of fate._

* * *

**Into the Mirror**

"I have a bad feeling about this place," Ron said.

Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger held their lit wands up high above them, as they searched their dark surroundings.

They were in a crevice deep in the most remote area of the Scottish Highlands. Not even a hint of grass grew on the wind-swept mountain they had ventured on. Sharp jagged rocks lined the crack and its high ceiling disappeared into darkness. The wind outside roared like a freight train, while the cold within formed ice on Harry's clothes. It was the middle of summer, yet here, it felt like winter.

As they drew deeper within the fissure, three forks in the passage presented themselves. Two out of the three were too thin to pass through. For a starved teenager like Harry, he contemplated whether he could squeeze through, but thought better of it. They ended up walking through the third fork.

"This is ridiculous," piped Hermione. The dampness of the place was making her hair bushier than normal. "I swear I saw a blue mist coming from this cave."

"We saw it too," Harry reassured.

They had seen some strange, yet futile endeavours over the several months of their Horcrux hunt; this was turning out to be no different.

Harry ran his hands over the wall of the cave. He felt no strange magic, only that it was very cold to the touch, and wet. He accidentally cut his finger over a piece of dark blue crystal. "Ouch!"

"Are you okay?" Ron asked.

"Yeah." Harry sucked on his bleeding finger, reminiscing how he had suffered much worse on the hunt. He had almost been killed by a snake, murderous Horcruxes and wandering Death Eaters.

After destroying the locket Horcrux, their interest turned to the strange triangular symbol that had cropped up in several places. It took them to the Lovegoods' house where they learnt that the symbol was for the Deathly Hallows. They also discovered that Luna had been abducted, but they didn't find out anything more because Mr Lovegood had alerted the Death Eaters. So they made a run for it.

They then travelled to Albania, exploring that region where Voldemort had been. While they sat stony-faced in their tent one night, they spoke about family, friends and Hogwarts. Harry mentioned Luna, hoping she was still alive, and how her dad betrayed them. It was then that Ron remembered that ridiculous remake of Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem in Mr Lovegood's house. That's when they thought it could be a possible Horcrux.

They knew the Hogwarts founder was from Scotland. This fact took them straight here. They came across an old warlock deep in the mountains, who had heard tales of a place Rowena would study and experiment with magic in. It was called The Giant's Cut, an ancient crevice named by the local wizards in the area.

After months spent travelling like lost souls, Harry felt as though they were on the verge of victory.

"LOOK! Over there," Hermione's voice echoed.

It was certainly a peculiar mist; dark blue and ominous. Harry inched toward it noticing that it was coming out of a tunnel.

"Wait!" Hermione suddenly grabbed his arm. "It might be dangerous." She pointed her wand towards it and muttered an incantation. When the spell produced nothing, she resorted to throwing a rock at it. "Well it seems safe, but I don't know."

Throwing caution into the wind, Harry moved his fingers through the mist. He squeezed his eyes shut, expecting some sort of pain or disfiguration. The only thing he had felt was a strange cold that made his skin and bones prickle with power, making his hand seem more alive than it already was. He pulled his hand away and saw Hermione's peaky face now glistening with cold sweat. She seemed very excited.

"What is it?" He whispered, as he rubbed warmth back into his freezing, tingling fingers.

"I—I don't know."

"At least it didn't kill you." Ron smirked as he felt the mist for himself. "It feels so weird though."

"There's ancient magic here. Magic lost to time." Hermione's eyes followed the trail of mist up above them, until the darkness swallowed it up. "Isn't it fascinating?"

"Yeah, it is, but I still have a bad feeling about this place." Ron tentatively placed a hand on the crevice wall trying to pull out a blue crystal.

"We have to be really careful now. You-Know-Who might've booby-trapped this place," explained Harry, eyeing Ron apprehensively as he successfully plucked the crystal.

Harry looked beyond the mist and discovered that the tunnel contained roughly carved stone steps. "There's stairs—"

_"ARRRRRGHHHH!"_

"RON!" Hermione screamed.

Their best friend had fallen through the side of the wall and was tumbling down a secret set of steps. They followed swiftly and heard a thump at the bottom, and Ron's echoing groans.

"Ron, are you okay?" Harry shouted.

Hermione reached him first, her cloak flying about her. "Oh Ron," she whimpered, kneeling beside him.

"M'ok," he croaked, feeling the large gash on his head. He paled even more at the sight of the blood on his fingers.

Hermione quickly fished around in her purse for the bottle of dittany .

"I just touched this massive blue crystal and the wall just vanished!"

"It's ok, mate. Do you feel anything broken?" Harry asked.

"I don't think so."

As Harry propped his friend up slowly he looked around the chamber, and his eyes adjusted to the blue light. He swore loudly at the spectacular site.

"I'm sorry," Ron mumbled.

"No, Ron." Harry pointed around the chamber. "Look around you."

Everywhere, books and thick scrolls lined the chamber walls. More bizarrely, hundreds of tomes were floating above them out of reach and the same blue mist they had seen above lingered here more thickly. The mist seemed to have created a barrier around the books, swirling slowly around them like time did not exist here.

"You're bloody brilliant, Ron!" Harry yelled in joy as he ventured over to a stone shelf carved into the chamber wall. Excitement pumped through him. He was sure that they were going to find the diadem now.

Ron staggered upright with Hermione's help, though he looked unsure whether his tumble down the secret passage had really been worth the effort. They walked around the circular room together.

Harry cautiously put his hand through the mist, grabbing hold of a large leather bound book that sat on the stone shelf. The book looked as new as the day it was made. Frowning, he opened the cover and discovered that the colours were bright and the gilding beautiful. Little drawings of people walked about the cover. The scrolled text shifted lightly as though it were in a breeze. It was made over a thousand years ago in complete Latin, yet perfectly preserved with not a dog-eared page, fading colours or the peeling of leather in sight.

"Hey Hermione, this book doesn't look old at all."

Peeking over his shoulder, she snatched the book off his hands, while Ron took another off a different shelf.

" _Hmm._ It's like the mist is… _oh…_ " Her eyes suddenly glazed over. She suddenly began rummaging through the shelves looking for something, opening each book in a hurried state.

"What is it?"

Ron rolled his eyes. "Let's just wait til she's ready to tell us."

Harry agreed and continued to explore the chamber. A book floating above decided to hover near his ear. It was the only floating book to have come down low enough for him to touch. He noticed floating books following Ron and Hermione too.

But immediately he knew touching it was the wrong thing to do. Something very bizarre and unwelcome was happening to him. A white light erupted from the spot he had touched and he seemed glued to the book, unable to shake it off.

"WHAT—?"

"HARRY!" Hermione screamed.

Ron tried to grab him, but he was repelled across the room. He smashed into one of the shelves and fell unconscious. Harry yelled out, though no sound came out.

Now a familiar, yet stranger sensation of Portkey travel was occurring. There was no normal hooking sensation around his belly button, nor was there that feeling of being sucked through space. Even the colour he saw through his confused eyes wasn't normal: it was red, a darkish red that struck foreboding into every inch of his being. Within the dark red void, blinding light suddenly pierced through, like claws had been scratching it away. Harry squeezed his eyes shut as the light stung.

Paralysed by an unknown strength binding to him like tentacles, he was forced to hear Hermione's anguished shouts.

Then, out of nowhere, a loud whooshing sound roared in his ears, drowning out his friend's terrified voice. After a second, he heard strange sounds, people's voices; snippets of conversations. Some seemed happy, others angry. There were snatches of laughter and moments of crying, and something which sounded like a train blazing past him. It was like somebody was tuning a radio to their favourite station.

Just as the noise became excruciatingly loud, it abruptly stopped, and the whirlwind sensation ceased.

Even though he never felt as though he hit the ground, the travel had ended. It was like the longest Floo Harry had ever experienced. Taking in a deep breath, he finally opened his tightly shut eyes. It took a moment for his sight to adjust to his new predicament.

The book that had been stuck to his hand lay in his lap now, looking quite ordinary. He read the title in a state of panic, unable to look beyond the book in fear of what he would find. The book read in a strange language. _Oe Fo Irbil._ He picked it up using the sleeves of his jacket and flung it far away from him, like it was diseased.

He finally took the courage to look around his new surroundings. He expected to see himself in some deserted park or forest, or a dungeon. Instead, what he saw stunned him.

Harry bolted upright and gripped his wand.

A woman, aged in her late thirties, with auburn grey-streaked hair was pointing a wand right into his face. What shocked Harry most of all was those bright green eyes that framed her face. The woman was his dead mother.

Lily Potter stared back, angry and shocked, and _alive_.

"M-Mum?" Was he dead? It had to be a nightmare, or maybe it was a Death Eater trick. "Mum—Lily Potter?"

Lily's wand shook slightly and she grew pale at those simple words, it was like she hadn't been called 'Mum' by Harry for a very long time. Her mouth quivered, her eyes darting from door to window, then to him again.

"H-Harry, how did you escape Azkaban?"

"What?" he laughed. " _Azkaban?_ I was never in Azkaban. I'm dreaming." He pinched himself.

"Dreaming?" she repeated slowly, confused. "Harry, you escaped days ago. Why did you come back here?"

"Come back? Listen, I didn't come _here_. I—I'm not even sure where here is, or if this is real."

Lily laughed haughtily. "Yes, this is very real. You came here to kill us."

"I didn't come—"

"Don't play games with me!"

He glared back. Where the hell was he? Who was she? "You're a Death Eater. You're the one tricking me!"

She raised her eyebrows. " _You_ are the Death Eater, Harry!"

Lily pulled the blinds down. The room was instantly bathed in an eerie light. "Tell me the truth."

"I. Don't. Know," he stressed. "Who are you? You're not my mother."

"You've gone mad!"

Theories sprung into Harry's mind: Had Voldemort tricked him into Rowena's crevice? He was trying to convince himself that this wasn't real, because Lily Potter had died almost seventeen years before. He raised his wand again.

A jet of red light sizzled past Harry's ear, smashing a family portrait behind him. He covered his head, ducking as a shower of glass and red sparks danced off the walls.

"Look!" He pointed at the tome. "I touched that book and it acted like a Portkey. Only now, I'm not so sure it really was a Portkey."

Lily looked at him closely with a calculating expression Harry knew only too well from knowing Snape.

"Stop lying, Harry!"

"Mummy?"

Lily gasped, and so did Harry at the sound of a little girl's voice.

Then a realisation hit him, had he travelled into a Mirror Universe?

"Mummy, what's going on? I heard shouting and something break."

Harry could tell this witch was now extremely frantic as she focused on the figure he could not see in the hallway. But he found the portrait that had fallen, covered in shattered glass. His heart nearly stopped when he picked it up.

All five members were staring at him. His mum and dad were in it, along with three children. There were two teenage boys, both auburn-haired like their mum, and the tallest wore glasses. The little girl, who looked about ten in the picture, had black pigtails, but her glassy eyes were all white. She was not smiling and neither did she wave. But most notably, there was no Harry in the picture.

"He's here, isn't he?"

"Jessica, darling, I want you to go up to your room, lock it, and contact your fath—no wait, contact Remus and tell him he's back. You know what to do, now go!"

"Jessica," he whispered, staring into her misty eyes in the photo.

If all this was true, then Harry could've had a little sister and brothers. He was suddenly jolted out of his thoughts when he felt something hard on his temple. He let go of the picture, letting it crash onto the floor again.

"Give me your wand and get up!" Lily yelled.

"What are their names—your two boys?" Harry asked, obeying the witch.

"Don't even pretend—" She looked livid. "Now move!"

He felt a painful jab and he complied, too stunned to fight back. There was no way this witch was a Death Eater.

Harry passed the kitchen and was led to a closed door. Lily opened it to reveal a vast darkness, and steps that seemed to lead nowhere.

"Get in. And don't bother using your Mage magic—"

"Mage—?"

Lily huffed. "The basement's got a number of protective enchantments Dumbledore has kindly put on."

 _Dumbledore's alive here!_ He was forced down the stairs. Lily closed the door and he could hear a number of locking charms being placed on it.

In the darkness, he felt his way around the room with a million questions buzzing through his mind.

Since when was he a Mage? It was rare for someone to do this ancient magic. Most become Mages through Dark magic and never lived long. But a natural born Mage was even rarer and Harry doubted he was. Surely, Dumbledore would've told him.

He leaned his head on the wall and closed his eyes willing himself awake. Maybe when he woke up, he could joke around with Ron about this stupid dream.


	2. The Shattering

**The Shattering**

The Dementor mist outside Remus Lupin's cottage in Yorkshire was particularly thick and menacing that afternoon. However, he sat rugged up in his favourite armchair, reading a few reports from Auror and Order member, Kingsley Shacklebolt.

The first report was about their friend's abducted children escaping from Malfoy Manor, which had occurred on the same day as the Azkaban breakout. The Order was searching Wiltshire for them, though so far, there was no trace of them. Remus knew that they were scared to be caught by their Mentor, Bellatrix, or the Ministry, and the children also distrusted the Order, despite their source giving them instructions where to hide.

The second report detailed sixteen bizarre murders of Death Eaters and another missing goblin that had happened in the past week. All the bodies had a Grindelwald's symbol carved on their cheek.

The third was all about the breakout at Azkaban. One section of The Black Square, which housed the worst of the Death Eaters and Ministry Rebels, had been blasted to bits, allowing several prisoners to escape. Death Eaters showed up minutes later to fight at the outskirts of the prison which could only be described as an uncoordinated attack. This suggested the breakout had not been planned by Voldemort. It was either orchestrated by Harry or this mysterious person creating these so called, 'Grindelwald Murders.'

_Remus, these murders had been ongoing for months, but never so many in a week. Also, several goblins had gone missing in the last few months. Why include the goblins? It's now creating a dangerous situation between goblin and wizard relations._

_I've also contacted the Aurors in Nurmengard, and they've said, Grindelwald is still shackled up firmly. Whatever the truth, witnesses say that this golden masked wizard wants to fight against the Ministry and Voldemort. While his followers, if caught, die before revealing a scrap of truth because of an oath they took._

_Even more alarming, is that Voldemort's sleeper factions in Europe are stirring. Is this wizard inspired by Grindelwald forcing Voldemort out of his comfortable hole?_

U _nfortunetely, the European Ministries have turned a blind eye to the Order's recent warnings, caused by decades of mistrust of our government, and a fallacy that Voldemort would never have the power to invade their countries, as you know._

_But the destruction in the Muggle realm hasn't escaped the world's scrutiny. It's been getting worse over the last few years and it's crossing overseas now. The mist is spreading and they're blaming it on climate change. The Muggles are desperate now. Yes, they do as the Ministry says, because they're too scared of us. Scrimgeour has threatened them, and they know it's very hard finding wizards. Yes Muggle warfare helps, but it cannot place a huge dent in Voldemort's army... or even the Ministry if they were brave enough. They'll bounce right back. Anyway, Ministries around the world are scrambling to protect the Muggles from our war by putting up a smokes screen._

'The U.K is a powerful country with only a small problem, caused by the terrorist group, the Green Skulls,' _they tell the world. And the Ministry's agents in the U.N have pleaded for no help._

 _That's because half of all the powerful Muggles have either been hoodwinked, bribed or blackmailed into submission,_ Remus thought. He sipped his tea, trying to abate his fear, but his fear was now reaching its apex.

_And speaking of smoke screens, my gut is telling me, that that's what Grindelwald is doing in Nurmengard, or it's a ruse by the Ministry to create chaos in Voldemort's circle._

Remus knew something ominous was brewing.

_Whatever the case may be, Voldemort will be advancing soon, and we will need all the hope and luck in the world to beat him.  
_

Flames roared in his fire grate, painting the room purple. The war-torn man, with the look of someone who was recovering from an illness, moved towards the fire, catching his reflection in a mirror as he hobbled over.

He hated mirrors and hated the way shadows emphasised his sunken eyes and cheeks. The wisps of grey in his hair made him wince at how prematurely old he must look. Even his little house he now lived alone in made him feel older than he was.

"Remus?" called a little girl from the grate.

Jessica always placed a smile on his face. It was just a pity the girl didn't smile back anymore.

"Hello sweetheart—"

Something was wrong. Perhaps it was the way her lips quivered or the way the purple licks of flames highlighted the terror in her foggy eyes.

"What's happened?"

"Harry's back. Mummy caught him. She wants you to come over, right now."

Remus felt as though all his breath had been knocked out of him. He knew Harry would try something against his own family again, but never this soon since his escape.

"Are you all okay?"

"Yes," the girl whispered, before her Flooed head disappeared from the flames.

Remus draped his cloak on, and stepped into the purple flames. "The Potters," he shouted. His mind whirled just like his senses as he travelled through the illegal and sometimes unreliable Floo connection that the Order was privy to.

Arriving, Remus stepped into the darkness of Jessica's bedroom and turned on the light. He found the girl fiddling with a lock of her black hair, back against the wall, staring ahead into nothingness, as she usually did.

"He's in the basement. Mummy said to lock myself in here."

"You've done well, sweetheart. Now, tell me, did he fight back?" Jessica shook her head. _Strange,_ he thought. _You were caught too easily, Harry_ … "Don't move from here."

"Remus," the girl whispered, wrapping her skinny arms around him, "don't leave me."

"You're safe. He won't hurt you again, I promise."

He hurried down the stairs, and wasn't surprised to hear a small sob coming from the kitchen. Remus tore his focus away from the basement door, and headed towards the distraught mother.

"Lily, are you alright? Why haven't you called the Order in—?"

"Oh God, Remus, he came back. I can't believe he's here!" she wailed, catching him in a strangling hug. Her long auburn hair was in a tangle around her wet face.

"It was only a matter of time."

"I—I've tried to be strong—but he's still my child."

"We have to protect ourselves," he encouraged. "Harry's not the little boy you once knew. You just have to look at Jessica and at Charlie's grave to realise this. What about the countless people he's tortured or killed—even your sister's family?"

Lily sat down in defeat. She had been such a tough warrior before now; this was the first time in almost a year Lily had actually showed any sort of emotion towards her eldest child. The last time Remus saw her cry was when they watched Harry being taken to Azkaban without a trial.

"I called you because as soon as James—Look, you know how hot-headed he can be. Besides, it's the first time in years he's had some quality time with the boys. I want it to be spe—special for them."

"But Dumbledore needs to know, now," he protested. "The Order—"

"Screw the Order!" Lily got up again. "This is our chance to talk some bloody sense into—turn him over to our side." Her face was bright with hope.

"No, it won't work. He's just too far in."

She covered her eyes again. "I don't know why I'm feeling like this. But it's all coming back. I saw something in his eyes, Remus, I really did."

"Like what?"

"Good… I'm imagining things, aren't I? But explain why the Foe Alarm didn't trigger to an enemy here? He didn't disable them, they're still active."

"Harry is a Mage. He can manipulate magic. Look, remember what you said when they first caught him?" he asked. He had been told everything after Lily had seen Harry in the Auror Department, caught soon after his brother's murder.

"I'm not proud of it. It wasn't me! I didn't mean it." She placed a hand over her heart, as though the words were wounds that needed to be healed.

"You slapped him so hard that even Umbridge was surprised. You told him right there he was evil, and that you were ashamed that you had given birth to him."

"I don't know why I said that!"

Remus hated himself for reminding her. He just needed to make sure she was not becoming disillusioned.

"I just want to know why," she cried.

"We all do."

The Lily he knew would be kind to even the most deadly of creatures and would help strangers and outcasts like him. She'd see past the bad things or faults in that person, and uncover that little bit of good. It was in her nature to give people a second chance. And what had happened in the Auror Department revealed how truly shattered she was as a mother and as a friend.

She pulled something out of her robe: a battered looking wand in desperate need of a good polish. "Harry had it. We should try to contact whoever it's stolen from."

"If they're not dead..."

"Please Remus, please talk to him."

"Okay," he resigned. "Then we'll call the Order in."

**(******)**

Harry sat on the cold floor, remembering what Flitwick told them in sixth year about Mirror Universes; he knew the magic to open the barriers was extremely advanced, rare and nearly extinct, banned by Ministries of Magic around the world for centuries, just as Horcruxes were and Time Turners regulated. Only an unusually powerful person could open it. It was realising this that made Harry's stomach fill with butterflies; Rowena Ravenclaw had been a truly gifted witch.

His ears perked up when he heard the basement door opening.

"Move and you'll wish you were never born." With a flick of the wizard's wand, Harry found himself restrained by invisible ropes.

"Remus?" The dark shadow did not respond. "Professor Lupin?"

"Since when have I ever been a professor?"

The wand flared up and Harry saw the werewolf perfectly clear.

"Have those Atoners addled your brain?"

Harry wondered what the hell Atoners were. "Wha—?"

"Your mother seems to think that we can change you for the better. But you and I both know that'll never happen." Remus paused. "Now, why are you here? You could've gone straight to your master. Why did you get yourself caught so easily, _hmm_?"

"I'm not the Harry you know. I think I am—I'm a Mirror from another world."

"A Mirror?" Remus raised an eyebrow. "Quite original, Harry."

He let out a frustrated sigh. "My friends and I were in a strange cave..." He decided not to reveal too much. "I touched a, er, book there, and it acted as a strange Portkey."

"And what were you doing in that cave?"

"Research..."

"For what?"

Harry hesitated. "A diadem."

Remus quietly registered his face. "Why?"

Harry just stared.

 _"Why?"_ the werewolf repeated more firmly.

"I'm sorry, but I can't tell you."

"I think you're lying."

"Well, I'm telling the truth."

"How did you come here? Did you organise the escape?"

Harry tensed. "The book I touched forced me to travel to—what I assume is—a Mirrored Dimension."

"That wouldn't be magic easily accessible to anyone," Remus scoffed. "It's not magic within reach of a seventeen year old—"

"Hey, you don't know—"

"What you've done? You murdered your own brother and almost killed your sister!"

"The book is upstairs, somewhere. Feel free to check it out." Harry was done talking.

"We can't open it."

"But— _What?"_

"We think you stole the book from the person you took the wand, and made it into a Portkey."

"No—I—that wand is mine!"

Remus Lupin sneered. It was the first time Harry had ever seen that look on his old professor's face, and it was disconcerting.

He had once or twice imagined a different world where his parents were alive. But in that world he was happy, safe, and his parents loved him. A stupid dream, he thought, as he felt the hurt of Remus's sneer dig deep.

The werewolf's gaze slowly moved up to Harry's forehead. The wand carefully prodded his fringe away, revealing the lightning bolt scar. "That's new," he said.

"It's a curse scar…" He told him the story. "It had to do with a stupid prophecy Snape had overheard."

Remus scoffed at him.

"I'M NOT LYING!" Harry yelled angrily.

"You are borrowing from the Longbottom's story." The werewolf stood up.

"Wait—the Longbottoms are dead—even Neville? You have to believe me, sir, where I'm from—"

"I'm sorry, but it's hard to believe you when you've done so much to destroy hundreds of lives." Remus shook his wand and the light disappeared.

"How did you escape?"

Harry pursed his lips, not answering.

"Alright... Before I leave, where did you get that wand? And for once, tell us the truth."

"I've told you before, it's mine."

**(******)**

Frowning, Remus locked the basement door. There was something not right with the boy. It was expected that Harry would be maltreated in Azkaban, but still, it was a shock seeing him so dishevelled, undernourished and dare he say it, _insane_.

"Did he speak?" Lily questioned.

"Yes… and no," he replied, rubbing his tired eyes. "He—"

"What exactly did you talk to him about?" a rough voice asked.

They jumped at James's sudden appearance. Jessica was gripping her father's robes, hiding behind him. He looked as livid as he had on the day he promised over his dead son's grave that he would punish Harry for what he had done.

Sirius bolted into the kitchen. His hair was combed back sleekly, and a goatee proudly adorned his handsome face. There were a few lipstick stains on his unbuttoned collar. Remus vaguely wondered who Sirius was seeing this week.

"Where is he?" Sirius said, looking around the hall, his eyes locking on the basement door. "I want to stare into my Godson's face before—"

James gripped his best friend's shoulder hard; the both of them seemed to communicate in silence.

"Wh-where are the boys?" Lily stuttered.

"I left them with the Weasleys. Now, why the hell didn't you tell me?" James yelled. There was a crease between his brows; his grey flecked hair tumbling over his eyes.

"I—I just couldn't!"

Jessica was cowering behind her father. "I'm sorry, Mummy, but Daddy called in to say hello and I told him."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: The normal Floo Network was closely monitored and the Ministry of Magic had to authorise every single travel. Once the user stepped into the flames, they'd be automatically Flooed to the Ministry and interrogated about their itinerary. Sometimes people vanished completely.


	3. Attack

**Attack  
**

Harry didn't have time to reflect on his conversation with Remus, because he heard several angry voices coming from upstairs.

"Protect him?" he heard an angry man ask. "From what?"

"From you, James!"

"Oh my God," Harry couldn't believe his was hearing his father talk _._

"He doesn't need protecting, if you ask me," said another, who sounded like Sirius.

Harry gasped. Hearing his Godfather speak again felt so surreal to him.

"I wasn't asking you!" Lily yelled. "Why do you have to be on James's side all the time?"

"Because I'm right," James bellowed. "He's going to pay and this time you can't stop me!"

"You would've killed him if we let you go to the Auror Department."

Any moment now, Harry was going to see his father again—this time alive and in a very murderous mood.

_BANG!_

The door flew open and bright light flooded the basement. Harry scrambled into a corner and saw James Potter literally flying down the stairs.

Lily tried desperately to stop her husband. "NO, JAMES, DON'T!"

Harry didn't even have time to think, let alone speak, before he felt fingers wrap around his neck. He struggled, frightened at the insane look on his father's face.

"You're not my son! You died with Charlie," James gritted. "You _died_ with Charlie!"

Harry began kicking him and felt his grip slacken. James then threw him onto the ground.

With panic, Harry saw Sirius stopping Lily from trying to curse him. She shot wand sparks into the air as he battled to rip it from her hand. Lily smacked him hard in the face.

"I'm—not—your—son," Harry spluttered.

"Stop lying," James spat, his words drowning out Lily's terrified shouts. "You came back and you killed him. You almost killed your sister. You could've left them alone and gone for me instead." James's tears fell onto Harry's face.

Black smog filled Harry's vision. He couldn't see James now, and his voice became a strange echo.

"You… you… _Murderer_ …"

A girl, somewhere, screamed. Her voice was so shrill, so high, that Harry dimly thought someone would notice her. Then everything went black.

**(******)**

Remus held his breath as James seemed to have realised what he had done, letting go of the boy's neck. He jerked backwards. Then he hesitantly shook his son's shoulder. "Ha—Harry?" There was no response. "What have I—?" A look of horror washed over his face. "No! Wake up—WAKE UP!"

Then Lily attacked. "YOU KILLED HIM!" She turned James around and slapped him.

Remus's heart thumped hard as he cradled Jessica.

"Nonononononooooooo!" the little girl cried.

"He's not dead," Sirius said angrily, "Otherwise the Aurors would've come through!"

Remus turned away. " _Shhhh._ Jessica, Harry is going to be alright."

"I don't wa-want him t-to die."

He walked the girl over to the living room and sat her down in the armchair that seemed to swallow her little body up. "Don't move from here until I say so." Jessica sniffled and wiped her cloudy white eyes with the sleeve of her jumper.

"Remus…"

He looked down. "Yes?"

"I di-didn't mean to tell Daddy."

"None of this is your fault."

When he returned to the basement he found Lily crying in a corner. James was backed against the wall with closed eyes, while Sirius rubbed his temples, as though the entire event had caused him a migraine.

Remus knelt down to check on Harry.

"He's not dead," repeated Sirius.

"I heard you the first time."

Bruising was starting to blossom around the boy's neck. Remus muttered a spell, healing the boy. He learnt that little spell from his Healer wife, Anne. However, thinking about her always reopened old wounds.

James opened his eyes, and a steely look quickly replaced his horrified expression a minute ago.

"Do you want to end up in Azkaban? This family's lost so much already," Remus said calmly. Even though James glared back, he would've regretted going too far.

Sirius snorted. "I think the Ministry would congratulate him for snuffing out a big name Death Eater."

"SHUT UP!" Lily screamed.

James grimaced. "I—I'm… I'm not sorry!"

"Yes you are," Remus replied quietly.

"Stop it, Remus, I'm warning you!" he fired back.

"No matter how much you despise what he did, Harry is still _our_ son," Lily yelled. She picked up her son's left arm, peeling his sleeve back.

"You think too much with your heart," Sirius growled.

"Excuse me?" she hissed. "You used to, too, before you became a cheap playboy!"

"I am not—!"

"STOP FIGHTING!" Remus shouted, putting a hand on his friend's chest. "Sirius, just go and call the Order in."

He knew Sirius would rather argue a bit more. His nostrils flared with brooding anger. Sirius wiped away a little bit of blood from his lip from where Lily had smacked him and left.

Remus's mind was buzzing as he looked over Lily's shoulder to see Harry's forearm. There was no Dark Mark, except for two scars that looked like puncture marks, and much less scars than they would've expected.

"No Dark Mark. He must be hiding it with that spell of his."

"Don't bother with a Revealing Charm, Lily," Sirius said. "Mage magic has a different imprint— even normal spells are difficult to remove without a bit of elbow grease."

"I know that, but I'm still going to try," she snapped back as Sirius disappeared up the stairs. Lily placed her wand over where the mark should be. Nothing happened. " _Sod…"_

"He's probably modified his Mark Disguising Charm anyway," James concluded.

Remus nodded in agreement. Voldemort once objected to this new spell, but now it was now a useful tool for the child soldiers to escape Ministry investigations.

"We'll need to check that wand he stole, too," James croaked. "A few months back we heard that Harry had created a Dark Charm that manipulates a wand's history, so that every time a curse was used, the echo of the victim would be obscured and unrecognisable."

"It's a useful spell for the Conditioned who still have trouble killing."

"Why?" Lily asked.

"The charm hides the identities of their failed kills and they escape punishment from their Mentors—although, now that that charm has become known to them, the Mentors have become particularly scrupulous of their young trainees."

"These child soldiers are captives, not trainees," Lily corrected. "So… these failed kills remain unnamed and unfound?" She turned to her husband. "That's one more thing you've been hiding from me James!"

He crossed his arms, cheeks lightly flushing. "Because you get overly sentimental when we talk about our murderous child."

"That's enough!" Remus interjected.

Lily huffed, before throwing several Revealing Charms at the boy, which showed nothing despite his recent Portkey travel and Remus binding him up. As Sirius had said, Mage magic hides and even absorbs remnants of magic, no matter how old it was, or as trivial as Floo travel.

She gave up."At least his spells are helping keep the Conditioned safe."

"They're not innocent children. They're Death Eaters," James scoffed.

"They're still victims!"

Remus was on the fence about this. "There's been eighteen years worth of Death Eaters kidnapping children of families that have angered Voldemort, and these kids are brainwashed into submission. They'll kill you without hesitation."

"And it's become a proud tradition and a form of initiation for Death Eaters to become Mentors now," Sirius said from the top of the stairs. "Harry was due to become a Mentor himself."

"Its sick!" Lily spat. "This is why I want to know—we finally have a chance to get all the information out of Harry about his double life!"

"Lily, Harry joined Voldemort when he was eleven. He did so willingly and hid it well from Dumbledore. Then last year, in his bedroom, he killed Charlie and failed to kill Jessica," Sirius replied. "We saw him Disapparate out of the bedroom. When will that sink in?"

"Did you call Dumbledore yet?" She pursed her lips and prodded her son's limbs.

Sirius huffed. "My Patronus is having difficulties finding Dumbledore. He's never an easy target."

"What's this?" Lily questioned, as she felt over Harry's clothes. She pulled out a pouch from underneath his shirt and ripped it free. She tried to open it, but failed.

"Mummy," Jessica cried once more. The girl was becoming more and more agitated the longer they were down there.

"Come on, let's go. He'll be fine," Remus beseeched as he watched James trudge up the stairs looking utterly defeated by the world.

"James—"

"Leave him," Lily said.

He agreed sullenly.

"Wait, we can't just leave Harry here, like this."

Remus hesitated, waved his wand around and a blanket floated over Harry, with a pillow fitting snugly under his head.

She waved her wand and moment later a jug of water and a tin of baked beans whizzed over their heads, landing softly near him. "What else should we do for him?"

"Nothing until Dumbledore sees him."

**(******)**

The house was in darkness. With every footstep, the creaking sounds of the floorboards echoed in the destroyed rooms.

"Lumos."

Rubble had littered the corridor, along with hundreds of Grindelwald's calling cards fluttering in the breeze. Albus Dumbledore picked one up from the blood splattered floor. It was a gold business card with a black 'G' scrolled upon it. It swirled as though it were alive and writhing. He had left these cards wherever he visited during his first reign of terror... and now he has started doing it again.

Albus threw it away as he navigated through the living room. Then his eyes caught sight of a ripped teddy bear, like it was something from a distant memory.

"Over here," Kingsley shouted.

In the upstairs corridor, there were two dead Death Eaters, and one Auror who lay dying. He looked at the Death Eaters faces and found the bloodied carvings of the Deathly Hallows symbol on their cheeks. _Gellert... using your old tactics again? That's very disappointing._

However, it was the sight of the dead boy with white, wide eyes, standing against the wall, which got their attention the most.

Dumbledore waved his lit wand at the boy. The corpse wasn't quite Inferi. This was different.

It cocked its head as a trickle of blood escaped its nose.

"Merlin!" Arthur gasped.

"What's your message?" Dumbledore commanded as he took a step back. The light of his wand twinkled in the boy's pale eyes. It was mesmerising, haunting, evil. "Do not touch him," he calmly told the others. "He may attack us."

The corpse moved its jaw left and right, bowed its head and rasped, _"Your side is losing, Dumbledore. It is time to die."_ It then fell to the floor.

They gazed at it, lost for words, until something gargled behind them.

"Dumbledore..." The dying Auror coughed and wheezed. "Dumbledore..."

He crouched down. "What happened here? Where's the rest of the family?"

Paul Sommersby, a grey haired, sallow faced Auror, was regarded for his intelligence in the Ministry. This family he had been protecting had been Voldemort's target and it seems an important one to Grindelwald as well.

"They took them. We failed... Father dead. Mother to Hogwarts. She knew things about ... about the Greek, Italian Depart... Mysteries... The other children... will be condi-" He coughed. "We couldn't save the oldest… stupid boy tried to fight them."

"Yes, a shame," Dumbledore grimaced; staring at the boy's now closed eyes.

"Grindelwald... wanted Unspeak… too..."

 _What are you up to, Gellert?_ "Grindelwald didn't mark you."

"Played dead..."

Then the Auror grabbed Dumbledore's wrist. "Come close," he whispered.

"Yes?"

"What have you done?"

"What do you mean?"

"You let him loose. Why?"

"How do you know?"

"I didn't." The Auror revealed a bloodied grin. "Just a hunch... Shall I call you, _Mr Cicen_?"

Dumbledore looked at the Auror's hand around his wrist. It tightened.

"Your secret… will die with me. Tell me."

"I made a deal with the devil to end this war."

The Auror laughed and blood poured out of his mouth. "No. _You_ are the devil," he hissed into his ear.

Dumbledore pulled away and watched the Auror gargle mid laughter before dying.

 _"_ You _are the devil..."_

He closed his eyes. Green eyes stared back in the darkness. A darkness filled with hurt.

_"I did what you asked me to do, but you still betrayed me..."_

"Albus. Albus? What did he say?" Arthur asked.

He jolted. Dumbledore hesitated briefly, rubbing his chin, letting his shortly cropped white beard tickle his hand. Then relief flooded into his body at the thought of the Auror dead now. "The Order is in danger."

"When aren't we?"

A large ragged dog Patronus padded into the room. "Harry's returned. _Chickens_ in chaos—Potters—Come quick."

Dumbledore closed his eyes, feeling a mixture of pity and anger.

Then they all vanished with a pop.

**(******)**

Remus helped Lily up the stairs and made sure that she didn't look back. "I think we all need a nice strong cup of tea," he added.

"Firewhiskey—"

She froze, shoulders tensing. He followed her gaze and saw Dumbledore. He was across the living room, staring at them with mistrust.

"Dare I ask what has happened here?"

No one spoke.

* * *

Please review. :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: The code word for an Order of the Phoenix member(s) in trouble is 'chickens'


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